


Better than This

by rebelcoelacanth



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Voldemort, Autistic Dorcas Meadowes, Autistic Regulus Black, F/F, F/M, Gen, James Potter has ADHD, M/M, POC Potters, Sirius Black has ADHD, Werewolf Discrimination, neurodivergent characters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-28
Updated: 2017-11-28
Packaged: 2019-02-07 22:58:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,396
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12851325
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rebelcoelacanth/pseuds/rebelcoelacanth
Summary: Six years out of Hogwarts, James Potter's life is pretty good. He lives with his best friends and works as a lawyer fighting for equality in the Wizarding world. Determined to protect his friends in any way he can, James takes up the fight against a discriminatory Wizengamot bill. When the work brings him face-to-face with a long-lost friend, he wants nothing more than to protect him too.





	Better than This

Taking a deep breath, James entered the flat. He was furious, fuming, alight with the passionate, focused energy that made him an unstoppable force in the courtroom. But his home was not a courtroom, and his anger was not what his friends would need. He dropped his keys near the key bowl and, after kicking off his shoes, followed the voices to the living room. There he found Remus and Sirius curled together on the sofa. Remus’ head was in his boyfriend’s lap and Sirius was playing with his hair gently as they laughed at some joke one of them has just told.

James placed himself on Sirius’ free side, leaning in and smiling softly at his friends’ laughter. 

“What's up, mate?” Sirius asked as he caught sight of James’ expression, “something's bothering you. Spill.”

Remus had turned his head upward. They were both staring at him, waiting. He wished he could go back to a moment ago when they had been happy and laughing, but he knew they would find out sooner or later, and he knew he owed it to them to tell.

“It’s… there's a new piece of legislation in the Wizengamot. Our firm is putting forward a case in opposition of it.” 

The laughter had fallen from his friends’ faces as they nodded at James to continue.

“It’s a bill proposing increased regulations and restrictions for “Non-Wizarding Sentients.” It wants to create registries for vampires, centaurs, and goblins, similar to the werewolf one, and institutionalize kids on the registries.”

“WHAT” Sirius shouted, jumping up from the couch, dislodging Remus’s head in the process. Remus pulled himself into a sitting position and stared past Sirius who had begun to pace as he spoke rapidly, his words directed at no one in particular. “How could they? No right. How would they feel? We need to go down there. Let’s put their precious kids on a ~registry~ and see how fucking well they like it. They want to do this well I'd like to see them try…”

“Pads” James spoke quietly, reaching out to stay Sirius’ movement. Pacing could, at times, be healthy for his friend, but he knew this was him working himself into a disordered frenzy. Sirius caught James’ eyes and held them for several seconds. At last, he nodded and allowed himself to be led back to the couch. 

“There's more,” James said once Sirius had resettled himself. This time, James looked directly at Sirius as he spoke, “the Wizengamot member sponsoring the legislation is Orion.” 

Unlike his loud rage from moments earlier, Sirius’ reaction to this news was subdued. His eyes pleaded with James for a moment before he gave up. Head fell toward his chest and he let his hair fall over his face like he used to do in school when he felt the need to hide. Remus put his hand on his boyfriend’s shoulder and, after a moment of tensing up, Sirius leaned into it. 

James stood and turned to leave the room and give the couple some time to process. As he was leaving he heard Sirius apologizing to Remus and Remus cutting him off, assuring him he had nothing to be sorry for. When he reached the kitchen, he retrieved the pot of leftover chai his mum had sent him home with and put it on the stove to warm. As he stirred, he thought of his friends in the living room. He thought of how neither of them deserved this and how badly he wanted to fight the whole world to make it better for them. And fight he would. On the floor of the Wizengamot, he would fight for them. For now, he poured the hot chai into three mugs and grated some fresh cinnamon on the top.

That evening, the three of them built a fort in their living room and watched muggle telly while drinking chai and cuddling. Several hours later, not even the tea’s caffeine could keep their eyes open, and one by one they dropped off to sleep, ensconced in blankets and each others’ arms. 

***

The next morning James arrived at his office full of both purpose and caffeine. When he got to his desk, he saw Dorcas and Kinglsey leaning against it and talking. Their boss had assigned the three of them to the project. Fighting legislation fell outside their firm’s typical work, but their boss had a werewolf cousin and it had not been hard for them to persuade him. 

“Morning, Potter” Kinglsey said in greeting. Dorcas waved at him, and James waved back. 

“Update?” James asked as he situated his things along his desk.

“Our intel suggests Black isn't ready to move forward with the bill yet, which buys us a little time, but we’ll know for sure after the Wizengamot meets today” Kingsley said.

“As for his angle,” Dorcas picked up once she was sure Kingsley was finished, “I think he’s probably gonna go the 'traditionalist’ route- I think he’s looking for old legislation that supports the ideas in his bill.”

James rolled his eyes, “at the bill, not you,” he clarified to Dorcas, who he knew often had trouble reading facial expressions. Anxiety churned in his stomach; the traditionalist platforms had been gaining traction for some time. Still, he thought, there existed no precedent for this sort of control. 

After an hour and several failed attempts to settle down at his desk, James got permission to head down to the Ministry early to try to meet some of the voters. He used their lobby Floo, and, several dizzying seconds later, picked himself up off the floor of the Level Two fireplace. Brushing himself off, he walked down the corridor until it opened into the antechamber. He was pleased to find many people in purple Wizengamot robes, including Albus, had already arrived. His former headmaster greeted him with a broad smile and an open tin of lemon drops. After a few minutes of polite conversation, James excused himself and began looking around for people whose vote he could be less sure of. 

Ignotious Peverell, an old family friend, pulled James into conversation with himself and a few other Wizengamot members. This was the first of several small talks. Introductions were made, stories about Hogwarts were shared and laughed over, and, when luck (plus a good deal of skill on James’ part) created an opening, Orion’s bill was casually denounced before James politely excused himself to continue his rounds. Things carried on in this fashion for some time before James caught sight of two people whose presence stopped him in his tracks. Stood near the entrance to the antechamber engaged in a conversation with a pair of Wizengamot members was Orion Black and behind him stood his youngest son, Regulus. 

Impulse control had never been James Potter’s greatest strength. Over the years, he had practiced the skill and improved greatly, but this practice wasn’t enough to stop his feet from carrying him towards the antechamber’s entrance. He wanted to approach the pair and greet the elder with a loud string of profanities (and perhaps a punch or two). James controlled that particular impulse, opting instead to settle on a nearby wall and come up with some semblance of a plan. The wall proved to be an excellent idea, as James found his head spinning slightly as he processed the development. He had known Orion was sponsoring the bill, and it made sense for him to be making rounds. But Regulus? Regulus helping his father try to pass this legislation? The more James thought about it, the sicker he felt, and the more he relied on the wall to remain upright. 

Deep breaths with closed eyes helped James recenter himself. After a few minutes, James felt confident in his ability to open his eyes without inducing vertigo. James opened his eyes to find Regulus staring at him from behind his father’s shoulder. Regulus looked away quickly. So quickly James might not have registered the stare at all, had he not once known the younger Black brother so well. He tried to recapture Regulus’ attention, but Regulus was now gazing intently in on his father’s conversation. James positioned himself behind a group of witches, using them as cover as he circled around them toward the Blacks. He emerged at Regulus’ shoulder. He could tell the other man had noted his appearance (honestly he was pretty sure Regulus had kept track of him since he and his father had entered the room) but continued to avert his gaze.

“Reg, can we talk?” James said quietly. He kept his distance, giving Regulus the space to respond on his own time. Regulus’ brows knit together almost imperceptibly, and he was quiet for several moments before turning toward James.

“Not here.” With that, he turned and walked out of the room. Keeping a discreet distance, James followed as Regulus twisted and turned through the Ministry corridors. After several minutes, Regulus stopped outside an unlit room, looking around conspicuously before stepping inside.

“Are we finding a quiet place to talk or evading evil spirits?” James asked lightly as he shut the door behind him.

Regulus kept his eyes on the door. “We have many associates at the Ministry, and I think it best they do not make note of any association between us.” 

“...We?” James asked, the levity gone from his voice, “you work for your father now?” 

Regulus nodded. James’ heart sunk, his fears confirmed. The two stood in silence for several moments, neither knowing what to do. There were simultaneously too many and too few words to fill the void between them. Regulus continued to stare at the door. James wasn’t sure whether this was his way of monitoring the hallway or whether it was his way of avoiding looking at him. 

“Why?” James asked softly, breaking the quiet, “After everything. Why?”

Finally, Regulus tore his gaze from the door, locking eyes with James. He tried to keep his expression cool, but he did not doubt his countenance revealed at least some of his inner turmoil. “It’s not easy,” he spoke with a steady voice, “and I do not expect you to understand. I was raised with loyalty to my family and their values. I cannot betray them as easily as some.” 

“Bullshit.” James interjected, the emotion and volume startling Regulus, “Those values are bullshit and you know it.” 

“We may disagree-” 

“We don’t.” James spoke quickly, gaining control of his voice’s volume if not its emotion. “Can you honestly tell me you agree with this legislation?” 

Regulus stared at the door. 

“Look at me and tell me you think “non-wizarding” kids deserve to be thrown in prisons.” 

Regulus struggled to maintain a neutral expression. His eyes stayed locked on the door. James walked over to him, stopping a foot away. “Do you really believe they deserve that? That Remus deserved that? How can you support this?...” He had more questions to ask, but the words died on his tongue when Regulus turned to face him. His stomach twisted as he took in Regulus’ expression; it was the same scared, lost, angry, confused look he remembered. Again, James had to fight the impulse to pull the younger Black brother into a hug. There had been a time when this action would have comforted Regulus, would have helped in this moment, but this was no longer that time. James kept his distance, tapping his fingers against his thighs as a tactile reminder not to reach out. 

“You are so much better than this, Reggie.” James said, instantly regretting the nickname when he noticed Regulus move towards the door. “Wait!” he called out, “I just meant…”

“I know what you meant,” Regulus said, addressing the door handle as he rested his hand on it, “but you’re wrong.” With that, Regulus opened the door and slipped out. He hurried to shut the door behind him, but before he could, he heard James call out in response, his voice steady and sure. “No, Reg. I’m not.” 

The door clicked shut and James collapsed in on himself. He bounced his legs to release some of the nervous energy coursing through him and when he found it wasn’t enough he began pacing. Pacing and thinking. Pacing and thinking and running his fingers through his hair and talking out loud to himself and gesticulating wildly and taking many deep breaths. After several minutes he had talked himself down enough to return to the Wizengamot. 

Back in the room, he immediately took note of Regulus’ position in the space (standing at his father’s side with a group of elderly gentlemen) but allowed neither his gaze nor his body to linger. He turned instead to a rather large, diverse group of Wizengamot members and their friends. Joining them with a friendly nod, he was pleased to hear they were already discussing Orion’s bill. His pleasure subsided considerably when the tone of their conversation became clear.

“Our government exists to keep the people safe. This bill would keep the dangers under control” One of the elderly men of the group said. Several of his companions nodded and voiced their support for this concern. 

Instead of reaching out and shaking the man by the shoulders, which desperately wanted to do, James took a hair’s breadth moment to steady himself and his words before responding. “Quite right. My question is, does this proposal keep people safe? Or does it put many of our most vulnerable citizens in even more danger?” James saw a few understanding looks in response to his question, but also took in a fair number of skeptical countenances. ‘It’s a start’ James thought to himself, ‘it’s a start’. 

The bell announcing the start of the Wizengamot session rang through the antechamber. From across the room, James noticed Regulus flinch slightly at the sudden noise and resisted the visceral urge he felt to walk over and try to help. A sea of purple cloaks began to move through the small entry door while various and sundry other people moved toward the lifts. Orion led Regulus toward the exit behind James. As he passed, Regulus lifted his gaze from the floor, catching James’ eyes for a fraction of a second before averting his gaze once again. In that fraction of a second, James felt a long-dormant hope spring to life.

‘It’s a start’


End file.
